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SERMON 



TREACnEl) IN THE 



Parisli Meetii Honse, GroyelaM, June 25, 1865, 



ON THE EETUKN OF THE 



SOLDIERS FROM THE WAR. 



BY 



HEV. MARTIISr S. HOWARi:>, 

Pastor of tho Congregational Cliiuxh. 



NEW BEDFORD : 

E. ANTUONV & SONS, I'KIMTEUS. 
18G5. 



SERMON. 



ECCLESLVSTES, VUl, 8. 

And there is no discharge in that war. 

From no sources does the word of God more largely 
draw in illustration of its sublime and soul-stirrino; truth, 
than from the military service. There is something in the 
noise of conflict, in the clash of arms, in the stern disci- 
pline, which belong to active warfare, which chimes in with 
the idea of God's truth marching on, contending with foes ; 
conquering them ; winning the laurels of victory. Hence 
we read that the Lord is a man of war ; that his sword 
shall be bathed in heaven ; if He whet his glittering sword, 
and his hand take hold on judgment. He will render ven- 
geance to his enemies, and will reward them that fear Him. 
The Son of God, though heralded into the world with the 
song of peace on earth, good will to men, describes the 
work for which he left the glory of heaven and the eternal 
companionship of the Father ; Think not that I am come to 
send peace on earth; I came not to send peace but a sword. 
And when an Apostle would set forth the Believer's defence, 
and the instruments with which he should be able to contend 
against principalities, and powers, and the rulers of dark- 
ness, and spiritual wickedness in high places, he adopts the 
language of the camp and the field, and his words have a 
military ring which sounds almost like the clarion voice 



Trhich summons the hosts to the battle : Wherefore take unto 
you the whole armor of God. Stand therefore, having your 
loins girt about with truth and having on the breastplate of 
righteousness. Above all taking the shield of faith, where- 
with ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the 
wicked. And take the helmet of salvation which is the 
word of God. 

When, therefore, life is likened on the sacred page to a 
warfare, and the influences which bear with malignant forcfi 
against its successes and triumphs are made to assume the 
character of determined and defiant foes, such as are often 
met in the stern strife of the battle, we have now learned, 
if we have never learned before, how much fitness and beauty 
there are in these hard, rough pictures of human life. There 
are long marches to be made; obstinate battles to be 
fought; innumerable exposures to be suflFered; nightly and 
daily watches to be kept ; rough usage often to be quietly 
submitted to. All these enter into a soldier's life. They 
arc each parts of his hard discipline. They all have to do 
with making him efficient, valiant, manly and true. Such is 
life. It has its long and weary marches ; its hard fought 
battles; its exposures and watches; its heavy discipline 
from friends and foes. 

But while there are innumerable parallels which may be 
drawn between the service of war and human life, there is 
one startling contrast. In the one it is permitted to look 
forward to a time where wars and fighting shall cease; 
when the exhausted foe shall yield, and the brave men who 
have so nobly served their country shall " come marching 
home." Forward to this longed-for time, they and the 
beloved ones about the fireside altars have anxiously looked, 
and every victory which has been heralded to their ears has 



been the pledge of that day of hope. In the other the 
conflict will never cease. In this war there are no furloughs : 
no discharges. There is the long, perpetual service ; filled 
with some triumphs; with many defeats; hopes changing to 
fruition; anon to discouragement and despair; a hard, toil- 
some march, in which the ranks are daily shifting, and the 
worn out veteran lays off from very exhaustion his heavy 
armor and lays himself down to rest in the quiet and soli- 
tude of the grave. The conflict of life culminates only in 
death, and this is the thought to which I ask your attention 
for a few moments on the present occasion. 

The simple mention of two almost self-evident truths will 
indicate the line of thought which I design to pursue in the 
present discourse. First, the foes with which men have to 
contend are life-long foes, and secondly, the principles for 
which we are called to struggle require eternal vigilance. 

I. The Joes with which men have to contend are life-long foes. 
In ordinary warfare the event of the conflict involves physi- 
cal strength, numbers and skill, and where these prevail, 
there the banner of victory usually waves. There is the 
skillful management of armies, the ingenious disposition of 
forces, the efficient use of artillery; and the side that has 
the supremacy in these, under the ordinary course of things, 
wins the day. True the apparently weakest sometimes 
succeeds in throwing into confusion the hosts of the mighty, 
and causing their proud flag to trail in the dust, but this is 
when the strength of the weak is in the justice of their 
cause and a stronger than human arm draws the sword 
against oppression and sin. With certain christian limita- 
tions, the oft quoted remark of Napoleon, that Providence 
favors the heaviest battalions, is true. In common earthly 
struggles, therefore, it is often easy to estimate when they 



■will be finished up and about what time the heroic sons of 
war will be gladdened with a complete and full discharge. 
So much has war become a science, in these last days, that 
it is an easy thing to count upon the chances, and to decide 
without much danger of being wrong, which will be the 
winning party, and at what point the last struggle will be 
reached. Such too is the perfection at which the means of 
carrying on the fearful enterprise of war have arrived, that 
a long war is scarcely possible, and the boasts which have 
so frequently been made, that the resources of certain sec- 
tions were adequate to the support of a twenty years 
campaign, have hardly been verified by any facts which have 
lately come to our notice. The eighty years conflict of the 
Netherlands could never have been protracted to that great 
length had it occurred in the nineteenth century instead of 
three hundred years before. 

But while in the very nature of things human conflicts 
must now be necessarily brief, and treaties of peace must 
speedily restore the accustomed order of things, there are 
foes which can never be beaten ; at least can never be so 
completely subdued that they will not be ever marshaling 
themselves anew with all the energy and courage which 
their defiant hate is capable of inspiring within them. The 
greatest enemies with which we are often forced to contend 
are not such as are brought face to face ; bayonet to bayonet ; 
eye flashing to eye with thoughts only of death. There are 
adversaries more insidious; more determined; more deadly 
than these. They sit down before the soul like those who 
stood or knelt in the burning trenches at Vicksburg and Port 
Hudson; who threw up their works about Atlanta and 
calmly waited till that fortressed city yielded before their 
indomitable purpose. They are never so completely driven 



off but they will return, often stronger and more vigorous 
than before. They search out all the weak places ; strive 
to undermine every strong tower ; watch with unfaltering 
vigilance, if perchance they may find, at any moment, the 
garrison asleep. These are the unconquerable adversaries 
of man. So long as the world stands they will be busy in 
their plans of evil. They will never give over in their 
attempts to embarrass the efforts of those who are loyal to 
humanity and virtue and the truth. BafiBed in one scheme, 
they resort to others. Check-mated at one point, their 
genius opens new methods of aggression. Conquered and 
driven back on one battle field, they will rally for new com- 
binations, and with undaunted front march on in the hope of 
victory. 

These foes are not such always as can be prevailed 
against by the common weapons of war, although men are 
often enlisted on their side and do good service on their 
behalf; but they are unseen foes, secretly plotting ; darkly 
taking advantage of human weakness ; defiantly breaking 
down the strongholds of principle ; dashing in pieces fond 
hopes ; blasting the future, and hanging a dark pall over a 
blighted eternity. Bravery, skill, imperial numbers, will 
drive back and annihilate such foes as are met on earthly 
battle fields, but not so with those who attack the soul and 
seek to destroy it. They can never be so completely over- 
come, that at some new point, in some unexpected way, they 
will not be found ready to engage in their work of ruin and 
death. Hence the necessity of perpetual watch ; of being 
ever ready for the field; of being guarded against the 
possibility of surprise. There is hence no discharge in this 
war. There can be no such thing as laying off our armor, 
or retiring from the service. It is a consecration for life. 



8 



These enemies may be conquered, but they are not utterly 
subdued. There is defiance in their hearts. They have not 
thrown away their hatred. They are still proud, and arro- 
gant, and rebellious as ever. They mean the overthrow of 
all that is good in the soul of man, and therefore they are 
pledged, sworn to struggle in the hope of success, and they 
will never yield till the day shall dawn when God shall 
vindicate the right and his own arm of vengeance shall drive 
back to their congenial hell the mad hosts which have made 
the earth a perpetual battle-ground, and who will only then 
have learned how fruitless a task is the attempt to over- 
throw the omnipotent strength of God and His truth. 

Every man must have long ere this come to know that the 
adversaries with which he has to contend are not easily 
baflQed. A word, a single well directed blow, does not drive 
them back. There is a perpetual effort to be made ; a con- 
stant watch to be kept over appetite and passion. These 
enemies of all that is good will unceasingly hover about the 
soul. There is no hour when they may not be at hand ; no 
instant when, as with fire and sword, they may not be ready 
for their demoniac work; no morning dawn, no midnight 
darkness, when there is safety from their fatal approach. 

II. The principles for which we are called to struggle 
require perpetual vigilance. Truth will not walk through the 
world alone. It must be held up by strong hands, and 
earnest hearts, and spirits full of sacrifice. ' No great 
thought has any motive power of itself. It must receive 
strength from without, as the eagle teaches her little ones 
to fly, fluttering over her young, spreading abroad her 
wings, taking them, bearing them on her wings. No cause, 
however good, ever made much progress, if it was not sup- 
ported by those who were intent on carrying it forward, and 



9 



who were determined on its success. The church in all apjes 
has been upheld by those who have walked round about 
Zion, and gone round about her ; who have told the towers 
thereof; who have marked well her bulwarks and considered 
her palaces ; who have loved the dust of her streets and 
have defended her from the assaults of her foes. It has 
been a blessed thing for the cause of human liberty that in 
the darkest hours there have been those who have been her 
unflinching friends. They have been with her when almost 
every hope has died out, and little remained but the firm 
purpose which a few humbly but heroically cherished, to live 
and die for freedom. To this end their prayers ascended 
and their blood was freely given. Thus the rights of the 
people, the freedom to worship God according to the dic- 
tates of the individual conscience, the right of self rule 
subject ever to the infinite supremacy of God, were held up 
before the world, and men heard these bold and startling 
utterances, and suddenly new light broke in upon the minds 
of the nations, as when the clouded heavens break and 
through the rent vapors pours the full orbed splendor of 
the day. But liberty is not safe upon its present lofty pin- 
nacle even, nor any other interest, however just and holy, 
unless it be rallied round by earnest and faithful men, who 
will guard it securely, and make its defence an ambition and 
a toil. 

To the carrying forward of any high and noble principle 
there are never wanting abundant obstacles. Truth rarely 
runs with the current, but often against it. It comes in con- 
tact with human prejudices and passions, and the opposition 
which it receives comes raf)stly from those for whose benefit 
it is chiefly intended. It is not enough that a great battle 
has been gained. There must be the faithful following up 



10 



to secure all the advantages of victory. It is not enough 
that a noble idea is promulgated to the world. That idea 
must be fostered. It must come in contact with human 
minds and hearts. It must be breathed upon the great 
masses of social life. It must be made to tell on the 
thought; and the philosophy, and the practical life of man- 
kind. Drop an acorn in the soil, and in due time it will 
spring up, and the sun will shine upon it ; and the rains will 
fall, and the quiet dews will descend, and after many years 
the giant oak will cast its shadow for many rods around the 
spot where long before the acorn was planted. But, for this 
massive tree with its grateful shade, thank the faithful sun 
and the faithful rains and the faithful dews. They never 
forgot their charge, and but for their genial warmth and 
moisture the landscape would never have rejoiced in this 
added beauty. So the great principles of duty and truth 
require perpetual fidelity. They must not be suffered to 
decline from neglect and forgetfulness. 

It costs something to sustain what is right. Error will 
take its course, like weeds in your garden, and thrive with 
little culture. It so chimes in with what most men love that 
it needs little external aid ; but truth is like a tender plant 
that must receive constant care or it will droop and die. 
Hence the demand for the utmost vigilance. For a moment 
even this must not be lost sight of. In the great conflict of 
ideas there must be a consecration to the right as true and 
unvarying as the needle which points to the pole. This 
must be perpetual and unfaltering. There must be an every 
day enshriucmcnt of right principles in the heart, in society, 
in the nation and in the world, with a devotion as true as 
that which becomes the soldier who in the march knows not 
but the defile or th'e thick forest through which he is passing 



11 

may be beset by the foe, and the next moment he may see 
the flash and hear the sharp ring of their deadly musketry. 

In this great service to which God summons men there is 
no discharge. This is a life work. There is constant duty 
to be performed. There is to be a perpetual burnishing of 
arms. There are great battles to be fought, which it is 
neither policy nor a token of courage to evade. Every man 
is thus burdened with a solemn responsibility. It rests upon 
him continually. If he is true to himself and his fellowmen, 
to his country and his God, he will not shrink from bearing 
it. He will be a hero. He will march up to the foe with 
defiant step, and though the warfare will never be past so 
long as he lives on the earth, he will not despair nor grow 
weary while the day lasts. Whatever a man is fighting for 
that is worthy of his dignity and manhood— liberty, the 
Bible, high toned christian reform, requires unwearied toil. 
Lack of success must not dishearten. Defection in supposed 
friends must not prove a drawback. Love of personal ease 
must not put up barriers. The slanders of many must not 
be allowed to deter for a moment the progress of the work. 
There is danger that these precious interests fail ; that the 
truth may lose ground ; that her radiant light may burn dim. 
It is for the valiant workers of God that they take upon 
themselves to see that what is so essential to human happi- 
ness be not suffered to decline. It is the work not of years 
and generations, but of centuries and cycles. One little 
human life is not enough. The whole race of mankind is 
involved in its prosecution, and it will be complete only 
when God shall place the seal of his Redemption upon a 
ransomed race. 

I trust the thoughts which have been suggested in this 



12 



discourse will not be deemed inappropriate to the occasion 
which calls us at this time to the sanctuary of God. The 
sun shines down to-day upon a scene of gladness and thanks- 
giving. Responsive to the calls of patriotism and duty, 
within the four years past the noble men before me have 
marched with willing step to the defence of the capital and 
to engage in any service which the safety of the land might 
require. Through scenes of untold danger and suffering 
they have passed, bearing a soldier's heavy burdens, watch- 
ing, marching, fighting; the cold ground or the hot sand 
often their only couch ; the heavens bright with stars, or 
thick with vapors, their only covering. They have met in 
deadly combat the rebel foe, and seen men as brave and true 
as themselves stricken down by the bullets of traitors. 
They have stood on fields of carnage and death, and man- 
fully struck blows which were made to tell for their homes, 
for liberty and for their native land. And on this bright 
and holy Sabbath after the toils of the campaign and the 
long weary march, in the name of the church and of this com- 
munity, I welcome you, my friends, to your homes, and to 
the repose which your honorable service for the Republic 
has achieved. I think you will join with me in regarding it 
as peculiarly appropriate that we should invite you here first 
of all, where so often you have been remembered before the 
mercy seat; where so many of your friends have during 
these many years sat and worshipped ; and receive in this 
christian way the acknowledgment of our appreciation of 
what you have done and suffered. In your long and weari- 
some absence, there has been a mutual impatience at the 
slow flight of days and years. Many homes here have missed 
you, and the hearts of many have been anxious as they have 
followed you unseen along the march; stood by your hard 



13 



pillow when you slept; ay, and prayed there when they 
knew that the next morning might dawn thick with battle 
smoke and the rising sun shine on the red pools of soldiers' 
blood. And you have thought of home ; of the dear old 
mother there who has never ceased to pray for you while 
you were gone; of the wife and the sister and the little 
children. There have been changes in some of these house- 
holds since you went to the war. Not all are here to greet 
your return who bade you God speed and turned away with 
eyes and hearts too full to utter more. Loved ones have 
departed, and may we not cherish the hope that they are 
happy with Christ, — and little ones, for of such is the king- 
dom of heaven ? 

Four years such as those which have just passed could not 
well be without their changes, and you and we all have had 
our personal share. For not all who went with brave hearts 
have come back to receive the greeting of those whom they 
left behind. Some have lingered and died in the hospital, 
and others have fallen with their face to the foe, but it is 
occasion for hearty thanksgiving that from so great perils 
and risks, so many are permitted to return to cheer and 
bless those who have long anxiously and prayerfully waited. 

Perhaps our eyes may never rest upon those distant graves 
where sleep the brave boys who died for their country ; but 
fresher and greener than the turf which covers them shall 
be the memory of their heroic sacrifice ; of their dutiful 
service ; of their martyr death. Peace to tho^ silent rest- 
ing places of patriot soldiers. Let the rains fall gently 
upon them, and the sunshine and the dew ; and when the 
land shall have rest from war, and the old prosperity shall 
spread its summer gladness and its autumnal richness over 
the now wasted and desolated sections, let a grateful and 



14 



happy people cherish those consecrated spots where rest the 
brave sons of war, whom no bugle blast can rouse, and whom 
no voice of command can reach, till the last trump shall 
sound, and the archangel's word shall wake the dead. 

There has been no sublimer spectacle recorded in history 
than the silent and orderly breaking up of the great army 
of the union after the work for which it was gathered, 
equipped and disciplined had been successfully achieved. 
Contrary to the prophecies of many that henceforth in our 
laud there would spring up a great military aristocracy from 
the seeds sown in this four years of war, and that a vast stand- 
ing army with its bristling bayonets would become a neces- 
sity to the authority and integrity of government, we see 
regiment after regiment coming back to their homes, resum- 
ing their accustomed labors, and becoming once more honest 
and honored citizens. The "bubble" of republican institu- 
tions and republican society, which jealous despots, four 
years ago, with oracular utterance, declared had "burst," 
has consolidated into a crystal dome, above which shines 
the sun of Liberty, and the reflected brightness lias already 
flashed on many lands, and has warmed into a furnace glow 
many hearts which have long beat responsive to freedom. 

For the glorious results which have thus been accom- 
plished, we render to you, my friends, your measure of 
praise. Without your co-operation and service our land for 
which the fathers bled would this day be in the hands of 
traitors, and instead of four million added freemen, as now, 
there would bo thirty million slaves. But let me counsel 
you that in your return we shall have a right to anticipate 
from you something worthy of your recent history. No 
men, I venture to declare, have done their duty better. We 
have heard of your brave ventures and your heroic deeds. 



15 



la the army, the camp, and the field, you have honored the 
beautiful town from which you went, and we are proud of 
your soldierly record. "We ask you now to be as true to 
yourselves, to your friends, to society, and to God, as you 
have been to your country in the time of her great peril. 
From her service, as active defenders of her flag and sup- 
porters of her authority, you are, or are soon to be, I trust, 
forever discharged. But there are duties here, and where- 
ever Providence may assign you, from whose performance 
there is no discharge. As long as God spares your lives he 
would have you remember .that solemn responsibilities rest 
upon you, and that life is a service of perpetual conflict and 
peril. 

We welcome you to-day to this sanctuary of God, and 
permit me to assure you that these houses of prayer will be 
ever open to receive you. Let these earthly courts, with 
their songs, their prayers and their instructions, attract you 
with their mingled worship, and may that God who has 
brought you through great and fearful danger still be to you 
a Friend and a Benefactor. With the discipline and courage 
which you have acquired in the service of the Republic, we 
ask you to cooperate with us who have stayed at home, in 
the carrying forward of every true and good work. You 
have passed through an experience which cannot fail to be 
of eminent service to you during all the rest of your lives. 
You have mingled in scenes the painful and the joyful memory 
of which must be perpetually lasting. Bring to us the 
benefit of what you have passed through and witnessed. In 
your strength make us strong. In your fidelity to virtue, 
and purity, and honor, encourage our hearts and hold up our 
hands. We would have you colaborcrs with us in every 
worthy reform j in every christian endeavor. Let this com- 



16 



munity be confirmed in its moral purpose, in its christian 
resolution, in its high minded integrity, by your coming 
back to these homes from which you have been so long 
absent. 

You occupy this day, my friends, high vantage ground. 
In whatever capacity, in the open field, on garrison duty, in 
sight of the foe, or more remote from scenes of immediate 
action, you and your brave comrades have saved the nation, 
and may your laurels be ever green. Henceforth, I pray 
you, be heroic men. Let no stain of dishonor mar the 
character which you have gained as Massachusetts soldiers. 
Be true still to the nation. Be true to virtue. Be true to 
every high-minded and noble sentiment. And when the re- 
veille of death shall proclaim the long night of faithful 
watching past, be it yours even in the struggle with the last 
foe, through the grace of Him who conquered when He fell, 
to exult in the sure pledge of victory. 



ADDRESS 



WELCOME TO THE RETURNED SOLDIERS 



OF GROVELAND, 



RECEPTION GIVEN THEM BY THE TOWN, 



July 27tli, 1865, 



REV. MARTIN S. HO^VARD. 



NEW BEDFORD : 

E. ANTHONY & SONS, PRINTEUS. 

1865. 



ADDRESS or WELCOME. 



The towa of Groveland welcomes her returning soldiers. 
Not with formal words and empty salutations, but with the 
emotions of a mother greeting the beloved ones after a long 
and weary absence. The storm of war has passed, and the 

whole heaven is filled with the songs of peace. The bells 

» 

are ringing out their notes of joy. The hills are catching 
and sending back the echoing gladness of a redeemed land. 
The eternal anthem of the ocean mingles in sublime chorus 
with the hosannas which as the voice of many waters are 
going up from a great multitude of hearts. 

We are grateful to-day, that we have a share in this ser- 
vice of thanksgiving and praise. Thanks to the early patri- 
otism, and the stubborn perseverance, and the unconquerable 
courage which placed our town in the fore-front in the begin- 
ning and kept her there during all the four years of the 
nation's conflict and toil. When the first sad yet electric 
call from a threatened Republic sped across the wires, there 
was no waiting to consider what response should be sent 
back, but along these valleys and among these hills, which 
skirt and beautify our noble stream, were seen marching up 
a band of heroes who never thought of calling themselves 
by that name till they saw that flag imperiled and the liber- 
ties of the fathers assaulted by malicious foes. In the hope 
of having some humble share in the safety of the nation, 
they left their homes with all that was peaceful and happy 



tliere; trod the hard, rugged ways through which their 
arduous service led them ; lay down amid the damps and 
dreariness of open fields ; stood ready at a moment's warn- 
ing to resist any attack, and never for once flinched from the 
hardships and the labors which are incident to a soldier's 
life. And when the crisis of battle came, did they falter or 
shrink? Did they flee before the approach of the rebel 
assailants ? Let the names which have been inscribed on 
their battle flags recite the story of their heroism; their 
patience ; their steady and unfaltering wills. Let the early 
struggles of the war, and farther on in the conflict, let New 
Orleans, and Port Hudson, and Vicksburg; let Gettysburg 
and Chattanooga; let Atlanta, and Savannah, and Mobile, 
and the small skirmishes which in earlier days than these 
would have been dignified with the name of battles, answer 
the questions whether or not there was any holding back 
from duty ; any shrinking from the perils of the field ; any 
cowardly turning of the back upon those who would destroy 
the nation and crush liberty. 

Not many of us who are gathered here, in the comparison, 
ever saw a battle ; much less ever mingled in its storm of 
fire and death. We have never experienced that first dread j 
that quick thought of home, swifter than the missile of the 
foe : that first solemn hush that precedes the bursting of the 
tempest; that first shot as it comes hot with death to many 
a gallant boy ; that first wild exultant reply of as deadly a 
death. We know not, therefore, how much it means, when 
we say that these men who answered their country's call so 
readily shrunk from no duty ; started back from no danger. 
They were men. They possessed the tender sympathies 
and the sacred afi'ections of men. They had wives and 
mothers, sisters and children, among these green hills. 



They had something precious to live for, and life to them 
was something to be cherislied and preserved. Tliere was 
those who loved them with all the gushing earnestness of 
mothers and wives, of sisters and children ; and for them, 
scattered through the length and breadth of the rebellious 
territory, ascended as clouds of sacrificial incense the fer- 
vent prayers of loving and pious hearts. 

The future better than the present will recite the story 
of what they have done ; and when the Republic which they 
have so honorably toiled to save shall have regained her 
wonted prosperity ; when once more her sails of commerce 
shall shine on every sea, and the busy whirl of her machinery 
shall be heard on the banks of every stream ; when her 
prairies shall rejoice in the rich promise of ever increasing 
harvests; when from farthest east to farthest west, the 
chariots of prophecy, " seeming like torches and running 
like the lightning," shall thunder across the continent; and 
irrespective of color, or class, or clan, the rights of humanity 
shall be recognized, and every man in every state shall be 
lifted to the plane of universal and unconditional equality, — 
their fidelities shall be remembered and their labors cher- 
ished. 

As a community we owe to the returned soldiers of our 
town our unbounded gratitude. They have done their share 
in the work of saving the nation. They have made sacri- 
fices which can never be balanced except by the satisfaction 
of feeling that they have heroically discharged their duty 
and secured results for which down-trodden humanity will 
never cease to render its measure of praise and thanks- 
giving. 

We do not forget to-day, the brave men who did not hesi- 
tate to lay down their lives for their country and for free- 



6 



dora. Slain on the field of battle like Adams Boynton, and 
Carr, and Granville Hardy, and Loveland, and Nelson, or 
sickening and dying in the same service like Berdge, Mar- 
cus and Willard and Leonard Chase ; like Fegan, Foster, 
Foye, John Harriman, and David Sumner Hardy; like 
Jaques, and Kimball, and Perry, and Ricker, and Stacy, 
and Stickney, and Sides, and Sanborn, and Willey. They 
are still martyrs to the cause of their country, and died in 
the interest of civil government and of liberty. Their 
names will be precious to us henceforth. They have set the 
seal to their memories in the pouring out of their blood. 
And what can be more fit than that as a town we express 
our gratitude for the sacrifice even unto death of those who 
now lie in undistinguished graves, at Gettysburg, at Sharps- 
burg, and on the plains of Virginia, and our sense of the 
value of their heroic martyrdom, by erecting in yonder 
cemetery, or on some suitable spot, a simple stone which 
shall bear the names of those who fell, and tell in coming 
years in what a glorious cause they willingly died ? 

We hail with gratitude these war-worn soldiers in view 
of the blessed results which have attended their labors. 
We have learned to hold in respectful veneration that noble 
Quaker statesman of England, whose outspoken sympathies 
have ever been on the behalf of this land, even when British 
aristocracy and British wealth were most exultant in their 
hopes of our disruption and ruin, — John Bright walking 
with a few others amid the darkness of those distant realms 
to assure us there were yet a few wise men in the East, and 
that in these last days they were following in the way the 
star of liberty led, though it guided them across stormy 
seas ere they should reach the Bethlehem of their hopes. 

Thirty months ago John Bright uttered the following pro- 



phetic words : " I cannot believe that civilization in its 
journey with the sun will sink into endless night to gratify 
the ambition of the leaders of this revolt, who seek to 

' Wade through slaughter to a throne, 
And shut the gates of mercy on mankind' ; 

but I have a far other and brighter vision before my gaze. It 
may be but a vision, but I still cherish it. I see one vast 
confederation stretching from the frozen north in one un- 
broken line to the glowing south, and from the wild billows 
of the Atlantic westward to the calmer waters of the Pacific ; 
and I see one people, and one law, and one language, and 
one faith, and over all that vast continent, the home of free- 
dom and refuge for the oppressed of every race and every 
clime." 

Thanks for what the soldiers of the American Union have 
done, — from the tenacious Lieutenant General of whom his 
wife, when asked some question respecting the downfall of 
Eichmond, once said, "Mr. Grant is a very set man,^^ and 
the long list of fellow-workers holding with him places of 
solemn responsibility and trust, whose names have been 
made illustrious by their honorable deeds, to the humblest pri- 
vate who has shouldered his musket, and worn his feet to 
blisters in the long and weary march, — these words of wise 
foreseeing have been realized, and we stand to-day where 
we can see that starry flag floating in the breezes of liberty, 
on every fort and arsenal ; on every navy yard ; on every 
public building in the land ; and not to-day as but a few 
years since over a single slave mart, or auction block, or 
southern plantation tilled by labor forced by the task- 
master's lash. 

This four years struggle has brought not only victory to 



our arms and the reputation of an unconquerable people, 
but it has brought a benediction richer far than these. It 
has borne upon its swelling wave the glad songs of emanci- 
pated millions. It has broken the chains which held a 
whole nation bound. It has proclaimed the sweet gospel 
of freedom to other lands, and the nations of the earth are 
welcoming with their uplifted hands and voices this procla- 
mation of peace and good will to men. The prophetic 
voices in the air heard by our own poet are already facts of 
history : 

" Take heart ! the promised hour draws near ; 

I hear the downward beat of wings, 
And Freedom's trumpet sounding clear ; 
Joy to the people ! woe and fear 

To new world tyrants, old world kings ! " 

We thank you, returned soldiers of Groveland, for your 
honorable service. We welcome you to your homes. We 
offer you these oblations, not as any fitting compensation for 
what you have done, but only in the sense of a grateful 
recognition of labors which no treasures of gold and silver 
can reward. 

In the palmy days of Greece a temple was erected to the 
god of the sea, and when the favoring winds brought safely 
home those who had ventured out on the turbulent deep, 
votive wreaths were hung on all the pillars and joyful ofiFer- 
ings were made to the merciful deity that had granted the 
propitious voyage. So to-day would we hang up garlands 
to be ever fresh and green which shall remind us how kind 
a gracious providence has been in restoring so large a num- 
ber from the vicissitudes of war and permitting us to look 
upon the faces and take in our hands the hands of those 
who come not back as they went — untried, unconscious of 



tlieir own powers ; but — may we not confidently say ? — truer 
and nobler men as well as more efficient and better disci- 
plined soldiers. 

It is not for us to recall the scenes through which you have 
passed. Imagination has no colors deep enough to paint 
the whole reality. Perhaps, by and by, some of you may 
recite passages from the thrilling story and tell us more of 
war than we have learned before. " Things which you saw 
and part of which you were." We know filU well how you 
will stir the enthusiasm of children and children's children 
as you shall recall the memory of that march through Geor- 
gia — that pleasant "excursion" covering a space not less 
than forty miles in width ; as you shall kindle in coming 
years at thought of New Orleans, Port Hudson, Vicksburg, 
and Mobile; as you shall call to mind the hair-breadth 
escapes, the intense sufferings, the arduous toils of the 
campaign. 

Twenty years ago, myself and another lad two years older, 
were often brought together in our sports ; attending the 
same school; wandering over the same fields; sympathizing 
together in our boyish perplexities and troubles. Since 
then our courses have diverged ; I following in the soberer 
walks of a sacred profession, finding a quiet home on the 
shores of the far reaching sea, or as now on the banks of 
one of the loveliest of streams, in the retirement of a peace- 
ful, country parish ; he entering the lists of judicial debate ; 
threading the intricacies of civil law ; pleading for justice 
for those who were too ignorant and humble to plead for 
themselves. Inspired with patriotism in the mad outbreak 
upon liberty and law which imperiled the Republic, he left 
his law books and his office, and entered upon the service of 
his country. Like a true man he did his duty. At the head 



10 



of his battalion he met the foe ; surged up Lookout Moun- 
tain ; drove back the enemy ; and only yielded when victory 
was his, and he a bleeding victim was borne fainting from 
the field. There are those before me on this joyful occasion, 
who will not cease to cherish with gratitude the name and 
heroism of Colonel — now Brigadier General Underwood,* 
who still lives, but who henceforth must remain a scarred 
and maimed veteran, made such in leading on his brave 
soldiers to that triumphant struggle. 

The fathers of the town, some of them venerable with 
years, who have been faithful in the work of providing for 
the wives and children of absent soldiers, greet you on this 
glad day, and in the name of the town of Groveland, thank 
you for the fidelity with which you have discharged your 
duty. 

You are welcome to-day to all our hands and hearts can 
bring. You are now at home. This is our thanksgiving 
day. This is the morning of our joy after the long night 
of anxiety and weeping. You have been long absent, but 
neither your hearts, nor ours, have grown cold. You have 
left some of your comrades behind you, who will never 
return — resting in the repose of a soldier's grave; and yet 
in a higher sense they are sentinels still watching about the 
altar fires of liberty which have been newly kindled in sec- 
tions where hitherto liberty, has been but a name. Peace 
to their ashes. After their toil and strife they sleep well. 
With holy reverence it may be said : " They do rest from 
their labors and their works do follow them." 

The brave defenders of the Republic — living and dead — 



* Since this address was delivered, General Underwood has beeu 
brevetted Major-General of United States Volunteers. 



11 



shall be cherished,, and in whatever capacity they served 
their country they shall be called benefactors. 

To the festivities of this day we renewedly welcome you. 
May a gracious providence spare you long to enjoy the 
blessings of that liberty and peace for the security of which 
you have done so much. May neither you nor those who 
shall come after you ever see that bright and star-lit flag 
dishonored; its gorgeous folds humbled in the dust; but if 
another dark day for America is to hang over and cloud her 
proud history, and this inheritance of the fathers is again to 
be laid hands on by despots and traitors, may the God of 
our fathers and of their children raise up as noble a seed as 
has once and again poured out its consecrated blood, and 
till the latest days of earth, when all nations shall be gath- 
ered under the supremacy of the king of kings, from this 
laud of the pilgrims, where Washington fought, and where 
Lincoln died, may the great soul of Liberty still go " march- 
ino; on." 



HYMN, 



SUNG AT THE RECEPTION OF THE RETUENED SOLDIERS 
OF GROVELAND, JULY 27, 18G5. 



Time, — "America." 

On this glad festal clay, 
We come our thanks to pay 

To God above ; 
In songs our hearts unite, 
With joy we hail this light, 
All grateful for the sight 

Of those we love. 

Peace, with her olive wand, 
Has breathed o'er all the land 

Her sweet repose ; 
The night of war has fled, 
Tlie darkness quickly sped ; 
No more in conflict dread 

Clash kindred foes. 

Hail to the valiant band. 
Who for their native land 

Confronted death ; 
Touch every lip with song, 
Wake every heart and tongue, 
Let music float along 

On every breath. 

Welcome to these glad hills ; 
To vales, and plains, and rills, 

Welcome again; 
Let joy fill every heart. 
Let sadness now depart. 
Let tears of transport start, 

Let gladness reign. 

Thou God who sit'st above. 
Ruling with gracious love, 

Thy blessing give ; 
Bless thou our native land. 
Bless all this patriot band, 
Help us henceforth to stand, 

And in Thee live. 



RESPONSE 



TO TIIE 



ADDRESS OF WELCOME, 



AT TIIE 



llECEPTION OF TIIE SOLDIERS 

OF GROVELAND, 
July 25, 1865, 



HON. ED^VIlSr B. GEORG-E, 

Commissary Sergeant of 4th Uegimcnt Heavy Artillery. 



NEW BEDFORD : 

E. ANTIIONV & SONS, PltlNTERS. 
1865. 



RESPONSE. 



Mr. Peesident, Ladies and Gentlemen : 

The duty has been assigned to me, by my fellow soldiers, 
of responding to the words of welcome so kindly spoken, 
and to the flattering demonstration of respect and honor 
which you have tendered us to-day. We sincerely thank 
you, who have spoken for the town, for every word of wel- 
come, and every sentiment of esteem, and you the citizens, 
for the pains you have taken, for the time and the money 
expended, and for the taste displayed, in making the occa- 
sion so interesting, so beautiful, and so acceptable to us all. 
You have all — old men who performed military duty before 
most of us were born, little children from the schools whose 
first remembrance in after years will be of the great rebel- 
lion, and the ladies whose grace and taste have added so 
much to the interest and beauty of the occasion — turned 
out in goodly numbers to welcome us home, and do us honor. 
And you all have our thanks. It does much — more than 
you may ever know — to render bearable the hardships of a 
soldier's life, and enable him to endure what many are obliged 
to pass through, to feel that there are friends at home who 
care for him, who miss him, and who are waiting impatiently 
to welcome him back. 

And now thank, God, the time waited for by some of you 
so wearily has come ; the war is over ; and the soldiers are 
returning home — most of them; there are a few yet to 



come, and there are some whose hearts gave no exultant 
leap when the Richmond they had directly or indirectly 
fought to capture at last surrendered to the grand army of 
the Potomac, — who lived not to sec the hour of our nation's 
triumph. It was fitting that they who return not should be 
remembered to-day ; and if they, from that land where there 
is no war, and where they are resting, we trust, in the happy 
consciousness that " it is sweet to die for one's country," 
could speak to you, the voice, while thanking you for each 
tribute of respect, would add, It is sweet to be remembered. 
Over their fall humanity may to-day weep, but in the future, 
when coming generations reap the blessed fruits all ripe and 
golden which these men toiled to plant and watered with 
their blood, humanity with fame will rejoice that in such an 
hour of danger there were men with patriotism and heroism 
enough to lay down their lives, if need be, for their country, 
and for the good of man. 

The services of the army and navy are often alluded to 
as a just source of pride. But it is not of these alone that 
we have reason to be proud. War is terrible ; war is cruel ; 
yet while evoking fierce passions it offers a wide field for 
the display of angelic traits. And into that field, with tire- 
less energy, and a devotion worthy of their cause, their 
country, and themselves, the women of our land have entered 
to comfort and cheer the sick, the wounded, the dying. The 
Crimean war yielded as its fairest product a Florence 
Nightengale. But who has numbered the Florence Nighten- 
gales of this war, who left homes of comfort and luxury to 
become ministering angels by the bedside of death, or those 
others who at Iiome have wrought to add to the comfort of 
suffering and needy ones far away ? I have heard of none 
of these having her shadow upon the pillow kissed by a 



grateful soldier, but I hope many a one before this has 
received a nearer and more touching token of grateful love. 

If magnificent armies unequalled in numbers and material 
have been raised, magnificent benevolent institutions before 
unheard of in the world's historj'- have risen to alleviate the 
•want and misery that ever follow in the pathway of war. 
And so if you have reason to be proud of your army and 
navy, we have reason to be proud of what has been done by 
the men and women at home, through the Christian Com- 
mission, by means of Fairs, and Soldiers' Aid Societies, and 
in numberless other ways, to support, and render strong and 
efficient the arms of our defence. 

But to-day with full hearts we will rejoice that there is 
no further necessity for sacrifices upon either side. And 
well may we rejoice and be glad, for we have witnessed the 
close of no ordinary contest. It swells into grand propor- 
tions, whether we consider the number of men engaged, the 
number of great battles fought, the desperate and protracted 
character of the fighting, or the importance of the issues at 
stake. Indeed it will be the right decision of the questions 
connected with this contest that will make it ever memora- 
ble. For grand as tlie great and obstinately fought for suc- 
cesses of Grant, as the brilliant campaigns and marches of 
Sherman, as the dashing exploits of Sheridan, as the bravery 
of the army and navy, are the moral triumphs that have 
been gained in this war. It would be a sad thought that so 
many lives had been sacrificed, so many wives made widows, 
and children written fatherless, and athletic men made crip- 
ples, simply that the old flag, much as we love it, much as it 
symbolizes, might float over every spot where it once waved, 
and be kissed by the sunshine and breeze as of old ; for more 
than this, more than the territorial integrity of the United 



States, than the supremacy of the Constitution and the 
La'^s, more even than the emancipation of four millions of 
slaves, was involved in this contest. It was the question as 
to whether men are capable of taking care of, developing, 
and governing, themselves. Ay, and as the war progressed, 
by the spirit manifested on each side, it grew into something 
deeper and broader even than this. It became a contest 
between the accumulated civilization and Christianity of all 
the centuries, and the concentrated bitterness and hatred, 
cruelty and fiendishness of all time. For as the noblest 
product of all the toils and sacrifices, of all the heroisms and 
martyrdoms, of all the civilization and the Christianity of 
preceding time, was, despite their faults, that class of men 
who, driven from their homes in the old world for conscience' 
sake, laid here the foundations of the New England and the 
Republic of to-day ; so the foulest offspring of all that is 
malignant in man's nature, was that class of men, who, edu- 
cated at a nation's expense, supported by a nation's patron- 
age, in violation of solemn oaths and every obligation of 
patriotism, duty, and religion, unsheathed their swords with- 
out one wrong to right, or grievance of which to complain, 
but simply to overthrow the freest and best government in 
the world, that amid its ruins they might rear a. new nation 
with that peculiar institution for its corner stone, that per- 
mits a man to sell his own child. With such a starting 
point for this great historic tragedy, can you imagine any 
wickedness to which the actors in its scenes may not be 
supposed capable of sinking? And standing here at its 
close, when the story of a long list of malignant cruelties 
ends in the assassination of a beloved and honored Presi- 
dent, can you point to one deed that does not fittingly fol- 
low in the train of such a rebellion ? 



6 



We do well then to rejoice over the results of this war, 
for freedom, civilization, and Christianity have triumphed. 
And to the aristocrats and despots of the world who rejoiced 
at the outbreak of the rebellion, and exultantly proclaimed, 
" The great Republic has ceased to be," we have answered 
back amid the smoke and roar of battle, mid defeat as well 
as in the crowning hour of victory, the great Republic is, and 
with God's hlessins: shall he. 



ROLL or HONOR. 



Names of persons belonging to the town of Grovcland, 
who enlisted in the service of the United States during the 

THREE YEARS MEN. 



war/ 



Isaac N. Adams, 
John G. B. Adams, 

moted to Captain. 
Stei)lien L. Badger, 
Laurentio Baily, 
Josoph A. Banks, 
Edwin Berdgo, 
Chas. Boynton, 
Moses Brown, 
Chas. H. Cammett, 
William M. Carr, 
Marcus M. Chase, 
Leonard J. Chase, 
Willard M. Ciiase, 
"Wallace N. Chase, 
Amos P. Chase, 
Alvau R. Coll)y, 
Geo. C. Curtis, 
William G. Eaton, 
Lcverett Fegan, 
John Follansl)ce. 
Geo. H. Foster, 
AVm. P. Foster, 
Chas. A. Foster, 
Daniel J. Foggerty. 
John C. Foye, 
Chas. C. French, 
William L. George, 
Thomas Oilman, 



Co. 


PxCg. 


A, 


19 


A, 


19. Pro- 


F, 


17 




2d H. A. 


L, 


38 


H, 


11 


A, 


19 


L, 


33 


F, 


17 


G, 


12 


F, 


38 N. Y. 


D, 


19 Mass. 




2 Mass. 


L, 


33 


L, 


33 




3d H. A 


L, 


33 


L, 


33 




3d II. A 


A, 


19 


K, 


U 


L, 


33 


G 


30 


A 


19 



Co. 



F, 

L, 
L, 



F, 17 



Navy. 



George W. Gove, 
James Griflin. 
Granville Hardy, 
Sylvanus W. Hardy, 
Chas. F. Hardy, 
Warren B. Hardy, 
Allen Ilardv, 
Albert L. Hardy, 
Sumner G. Hardy, 
David S. Hardy. 
Moses C. Hearle. 
Gilman S. Higly. 
Wm. Holmes, 
George W. Holliston, A, 
]\Ielvin Ilopkinson, 
Rufiis H. Hopkinson, 
Lowell Hopkinson, 
John F. Hoyt. 
Horace Jaques. 
George S. Johnson. 
Charles H. Johnson, 
Samuel E. Jones, 
Marcus Kimball, 
Asa H. Kimball, 
tChas. H. Kimball, 
tJames M. Kimball, 
Nathaniel E. Ladd, 

afterwards promoted 

and enlisted in 



Reg. 
33 

17 
19 
33 
33 

3d H. A. 

3d H. A. 

3d H. A. 



A, 


19 




A, 


19 






2dH. 


A 




3d H. 


A 


H, 


11 




H, 


11 




A, 


19 




A, 


19 




G, 


12 




L, 


33t 




L, 


33 




L, 


33 





* These lists of the soldiers of Groveland, have been furnished by the 
chairman of the Board of Selectmen, and other aid imregard to their 
enlistment, and death of those who have died or have fallen in battle 
has been kindly furnished by Charles G. Savery, Esq. 

t These men were discharged before leaving the State. Those with 
this mark J however enlisted afterwards and were accepted. 



Co. 

Jeremiah B. P. Ladd, 
promoted to 2d Lieut., 
and transferred to 

tWm. H. Littlefield, 

is^athaniel Lovelaud, 

James Leucy. 

William D. Mitchel, 

Augustus Y. Noyes, 

Edwin C. Noyes. 

George A. Ordway. 

Gilmau N. Pai'ker, 

Eustis G. Parker, 

Olando S. Paris, 

Eugene Parker. 

Chas. E. Peabody, 

Samuel T. Perry, 

William S. Perry, 

Daniel S. Pike, 

Benj. F. Pike, 

Wm. H. Reed. 

Henry C. Rice. 

Edwin C. Ricker, 



A, 
H, 



A, 
A, 



G, 
A, 



Reg-. 
3dH. 

4th H. 
33J 
19 

17 
11 



Navy. 



12 
22 
33 
33 

40 N. Y. 



L, 33 Mass. 



John P. Rundlett, 
Oliver S. Rundlett, 
George S. Sides, 
Timothy W. Spiller, 
John N. Stacy, 
Joseph C. Stacy, 
Timothy A. Stacy, 
Albert C. Stacy, 
Edwin T. Stevens, 
Moses M. Stickncy, 
Peter Stillman, 
Erank Tone. 
A. Dana Torry, 
Chas. D. Twombly, 
Henry B. Webber, 

moted to Captain. 
Wellington B. Webber, 
George H. Wiggins. 
Henry Willey. 
George Willey, 
Luther P. Witham. 



Co. 


Reg. 


B, 


33 - 


A, 


19 " 


F, 


17 


H, 


11 


A, 


19 


B, 


33 


B, 


33 


B, 


33 




3dH. A 


B, 


33 - 


A, 


19 


c. 


17 




3d H. A 


P, 


17. Pro- 


er. 


7 th Batt 



Navy. 



NINE MONTHS MEN. 



Co. Reg. 

John A. Bacon, K, 50 

*Willia,m Balch, B, 48 

*Hiram T. Balch, B, 48 

Thos. W. Crombie, B, 48 

*George E. Danforth, B, 48 

*CalvinE.Farrington,B, 48 

Frank M. Foster, B, 48 

tHiram S. Foy, B, 48t 

John Hershal Hardy, B, 48 

John Hiukson Hardy, B, 48 

John Harriman Hardy, B, 48 

tAaron W. Hardy, B, 48 

Mansel C. Hardy, B, 48 

Benj. L. Hardy, B, 48 



Co. 



Chas. PL Mitchell, 
Geo. H. Mitchell, 
Darius H. Nelson, 
Rufus E. Parker, 
Charles S. Parker, 
Henry G. Rollins, 

First Lieutenant, 
Edward Richardson, 
Jereiniah B. Sanborn, 
William 0. Sides, 
Thomas A. Sides, 
Oscar M. Stickney, 
James S. Walsh, 
Cj'rus B. Wiggins, 



B, 
B, 
B, 
K, 
K, 

B, 
B, 
B, 
K, 
K, 
B, 
B. 
K, 



Eeg 

48 
48 
48 
50 
50 

48 
48 
48 
50 
50 
48 
48 
50 



ONE YEAR MEN. 



Charles T. Balch, Fort Pickering, 
Salem, Mass. 

Frank Griffith, Fort Pickering, 
Salem, Mass. 

Elbridge A. Richardson, Fort Pick- 
ering, Salem, Mass. 

Charles H. Smith, Fort Pickering, 
Salem, Mass. 

John E. Brown, Mass. 4th H. A. 

Charles H. Brown, 

Chai'les Cann, 

Rodolphus Danforth, 

Samuel H. Downes, 

Edwin B. George, 

Charles S. Hardy, 

* Afterwards enlisted In one year men, some in the 4th Mass. H. A., 
others at Fort Pickering, Salem Harbor, 
t J See note at foot of preceding page. 



Paul Hopkinson, Mass. 4th 

Leverett Hopkinson, 

Wm. H. Hopkinson, 

Francis A. Hull, 

Hiram G. Knox. 

Henry N. Page, 

Aaron B. Parker, 

Nathan Sargent, 

Warren Sargent, 

Edward Savery, 

Austin G. Smith, 

Chas. B. Somes, 

James L. AVales, Jr., 

Justin R. Wood, 



H.A. 



SOLDIEHS KILLED AND DIED OP DISEASE. 

Isaac N. Adams, Co. A, IDtli Reg. Wounded and killed at battle of 
Antietam, Sept. 18C2. 

Edwin F. Berdgc, Co. II. 11th Keg. Died of disease at Bottom Bridge, 
July Gth, 1802. 

Charles Boyuton, Co. A, I'Jth Ileg. Killed on the retreat from Rich- 
mond, June 30th, 18(;2. 

Leonard J. Chase, Co. D, 19th Reg. Returned home sick and died. 

jMareus M. Chase, Co. F, 38th N. Y. Keg. 

William M. Carr, Co. G, 12th Mass. Reg. Killed at battle of Gettys- 
burg, July 3d, 18G3. 

John C. Foye, Co. G, 30th Reg. Died of fever at New Orleans. 

Granville Hardy, Co. F, 17th Reg. Killed at Goldsborough, N. C. 

Asa II. Kimball, Co. G, 12tli Reg. Died in Libby Prison, Richmond, Va, 

Nathaniel Lovelaud, IDth Reg. Died from Avounds at Fair Oaks. 

John N. Stacy, Co. A, 19th Reg. Died at Aquia Creek. 

Willard M. Chase, 2d Mass. Reg. Returned home sick and died. 

George Willey, Navy. Died on board gunboat "Mound City." 

William S. Perry, Co. L, 33d Reg. Died at Alexandria. 

Edwin C. Ricker, Co. L, 33d Reg. Died of fever at Washington. 

Moses W. Stickney, Co. L, 33d Reg. Died in hospital at Philadelphia. 

Frank M. Foster, Co. B, 50th Reg. Died at Baton Rogue, La. 

John Harriman Hardy, Co. B., 48th Reg. Died of fever at New 
Orleans, La. 

Darius W. Nelson, Co. B, 48th Reg. Killed before Port Hudson, La. 

Jeremiah B. Sanborn, Co."B, 48th Reg. Died of fever in Louisiana. 

William 0. Sides, Co. K, 50th Reg. Died at New Orleans. 

John Fegan. Died in rebel prison. 

David S. Hard}\ Died in rebel prison. 

Horace Jaques. Missing. Supposed to have been taken prisoner 
and died. 



THE RECEPTION. 



PREPAEED BY CHARLES D. PAGE. 



At a town meeting held in Groveland June 9tli, 1865, it 
was voted to give to the returned soldiers of the town a 
public reception, and a committee consisting of seven was 
chosen to carry this vote into effect. This committee fixed 
upon Thursday, July 27th, as a suitable day, and for several 
days previous the citizens were busy in preparation for the 
happy occasion. A briglit and beautiful day dawned auspi- 
ciously and all nature seemed anxious to contribute to the 
joyful festivities. 

At half past nine o'clock the " Bradford Light Infantry," 
Capt. Rollins, — formed 1823 ; re-organized for the occasion, 
bearing a banner with the motto "We still live," 1865; on 
the reverse, B. L. I. 1823, — marched from their rendezvous 
to the common near the Congregational Church, and, after 
receiving the returned soldiers, escorted them to the com- 
mon in front of the Independent Church, where the proces- 
sion was formed under Elijah Clarke, Chief Marshal, in the 
following order : 

Aid, Chief Marshal. Aid, 

C. Wordwell. H. A. Spofford. 

Bradford Light Infantry. 
A Barouche containing the President of the day ; Chair- 
man of the Board of Selectmen ; Orator and Guests. 



The rctiirncci soldiers in two companies, commanded by 
Lieutenant J. B. P. Ladd and Lieutenant James Waldh — 
Captain J. G. B. Adams acting as Major. 

Tiie Soldiers' Aid Society in a carriage drawn by four 
horses, displaying in tlie shape of good wool socks tangible 
evidence of the motto they bore : " You have drawn the 
sword for us ; we have kept the needles bright for you." 

Lady visitors of Perry Division of Sons of Temperance, 
in a barge, dressed in white with scarlet capes and blue 
caps. Their motto : We hate and denounce that which 
makes woman weep. 

Primary Schools, in trimmed wagons. Allegorical repre- 
sentations as follows: Treason followed by Desolation; 
Justice; Peace succeeded by Plenty; Flora; Education; 
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. 

Grammar Schools, with appropriate banners. 

Citizens in carriages and on foot. 

The procession moved up Gardner street to Main ; down 
Main to the lower common. Here a temporary monu- 
ment had been erected bearing the names of those who have 
fallen or died while in tlie service. Upon the one side of 
the shaft, in a green bower bearing the motto, " Humanity 
weeps," stood a female figure draped in black; and on the 
other side, in a similar bower with the motto, " Fame re^ 
joices," another female figure, in white, crowned with laurels, 
has just finished the record of names upon her book of gold. 

The veterans and returned soldiers formed in line, and 
while resting on reversed arms, the band played a dirge; 
after which, resuming the line of march, passing through the 
the principal streets, the procession entered the Congrega- 
tional Church, where the following exercises took place : 



Yoluntary by Gilmore's Band. 
Nathaniel Ladd, Esq., President of the day, and Chair- 
man of the Board of Selectmen, in a few well chosen and 
appropriate words, ia behalf of the town welcomed the 
soldiers " to all the religious and civil privileges of home," 
and then announced the order of exercises : 
Singing by the Choir. 
Prayer by Rev. D. Foster, of West Newbury. 
Singing. 
Address of Welcome. 
Singing original Hymn. 
Benediction. 

The procession then re-formed, and marched to Balch's 
Grove where a bountiful collation had been prepared. Con- 
spicuous upon the soldiers' table was a loaf of cake weigh- 
ing about sixty pounds, representing a fort, surmounted by 
cannon, the stars and stripes waving from the highest point. 
At the close of the dinner the loaf was divided among the 
soldiers. 

The company then gathered about the speakers' stand, 
and Hon. Edwin B. George, of the 4th Regiment, spoke on 
behalf of the returned soldiers, and the remaining time was 
occupied in speaking, singing, and music by the band until 
five o'clock, when the assembly broke up, and thus closed a 
long to be remembered day, nothing having occurred to mar 
its success. 



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